Moment of Truth
by DeeSisa
Summary: An Overgron - Dianna Agron/ Chord Overstreet - RPF. "The sight, sound and mention of her name lifts his spirits up - especially at a time in his life where everything stands still with a big question mark."
1. Chapter 1

It is as if there's been a string tied around his heart for the past couple of months. One which he can't possibly explain even to himself. The sight, sound and mention of her name lifts his spirits up - especially at a time in his life where everything stands still with a big question mark.

He's been meaning to express his feelings towards her for a while now and, at that very moment, he has been given a chance to. She stands before him with that special smile of her's and he is caught staring in awe at her once again. Wondering how such a person came to be. One seemingly perfect human being with a heart of gold. He tries to utter the words he so longingly wants to say and yet, for the hundredth time, he hesitates.

The moment is gone. She bids him farewell and leaves him standing in a room full of people. You see, when she is with him, everything and everyone else disappears. But just as soon as he has found his safe haven, it all reappears when she leaves. And that's an image he didn't want to have – a life without her in it. He shakes his head from his daydream and searches for her among the crowd quickly. Thankfully, he immediately finds her, smiles and catches up to her once again.

"Hey, I know you have to go, but, can we talk for a minute?" he asks the young lady. She nods, smile still in tact. He takes her hand gently and walks her towards an almost secluded part of the room. To be safe, he looks around the room making sure that no one can see them. "So here it goes. Di, I can't just stand here anymore and let other guys have you." Her smile slowly fades and gives him a quizzical look. "I… I don't understand what you mean," she tells him.

Without meaning to, words instantly began to burst out of him. "I… admire you. I've admired you for a while now. I just thought you should know that. I also want you to know that I would never use you or make you feel like you're an accessory like he does. I want you to know and feel that you're special and that you're not like anyone else out there. You're one of a kind and you should be treated as such."

"Y-you shouldn't be saying things like that to me, Chord," she tells him, "What about Emma?"


	2. Chapter 2

"The only reason why I gave Emma and I a try was because you decided to be with Sebastian," Chord says with more conviction than he intended to. A pang of shock and fear suddenly surrounded Dianna as she continued to listen to Chord. The usually quiet and goofy person she had known to appreciate now had a stern look. All of his problems written on his face.

"Chord, don't do this." Dianna tells him, "It's not fair to her. I mean, have you even talked to her about these… these feelings that you're suddenly having? How do you even know that I'm the right one for you? Sure, we have some things in common but we also grew up differently and believe in different things. Plus, you've only known me for less than a year." He holds Dianna's hands once again but, this time, he places them close to his chest and looks her in the eyes. She immediately feels the rapid beating of his heart. "I have never, in my life, felt this way before about anyone. Any woman for that matter. I'm so lost right now and I need you to help me," he tells her while holding back his tears.

Chord has been going through a lot lately. The situation between himself and the writers on the show and his relationship with Emma has been taking a massive toll on him. He's had sleepless nights trying to think of ways to break his relationship off with Emma. He's had constant and useless banters back and forth with the writers about his future on Glee. But, at the end of those tiring days, he always depended on Dianna to brighten up his mood. Most recently, his friendship with Dianna deepened while they were on tour. They were inseparable. That's when it dawned on him that no one will ever understand him more than Dianna does.

"I know that I'm in a relationship right now, but I will end it right away for you. Just give me the word and it's done," Chord tells her. She shakes her head in disbelief and releases herself from Chord's grasp. "We can't do this. Now, I'm telling you this because I'm your friend and, as my friend, you need to listen carefully. You have a lot of things on your plate right now. You need to focus, Chord. Ryan is still waiting for your answer, remember? So, please, I'm begging you, fix that before getting yourself into any other situation. It's for your own good," she tells him, and with that note, she walks away from him. Once again, she's out of the picture. Out of his life.


	3. Chapter 3

**_Note:_** I wrote this chapter around the time Brad Falchuk announced that Chord chose to leave the show. Though Chord's departure saddens me, I wish him nothing but the best of luck and will continue to support him in whatever he chooses to do.

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><p>A week after the incident with Dianna, Chord considered her suggestion to focus on his current problems. He figured that, once he had solved these, he could try pursuing a relationship with Dianna again.<p>

As he entered the Fox compound, he couldn't help but feel nervous at what he was about to do. He doesn't know how Brad, Ian and, most specifically, Ryan would react, but Chord walked in hoping that they would understand. As he opened the door to the conference room, Chord took a deep breath in and greeted the writers a warm smile. He sat in front of them and waited for one of the writers to speak first.

"How are you doing today, Chord?" Ryan asks him. "I'm doing pretty good. Yourself?" he asks Ryan, smile still in tact. "Not bad, not bad," Ryan takes a deep breath in and continues on, "Look, Chord, we're not going to beat around the bush here. You know why we've asked you to come by and, to be frank with you, we need a definite answer now. We're going to start filming in less than a month's time and it's quite difficult for us to write for you if your time in the show is a mystery. Do you know what I mean?" Chord's smile has now faded. He nods and looks at each of the three men sitting in front of him – as if he's sizing them up. Ian then leans forward and lets out a deep and burdened sigh. "So what's your decision, Chord?"

Chord takes a deep breath in and lets out a sigh. He quickly closes his eyes for a moment to sort out his thoughts and opens them just as quickly to look at the three men. "Listen, guys, I really appreciate the opportunity you have given me but… I can't take your offer." Brad quickly stands up in shock while Ryan tries to hold Brad down in fear that he might do something to Chord. "You what?" shouts Brad at the top of his lungs.

An awkward moment's silence surrounded the room, which did not seem to bother Chord. Brad is clearly livid at this point but Chord presses on. He didn't want leave that afternoon feeling like he has betrayed the same three men who believed in him and his talent. "Please let me explain," suggests Chord, "I accepted your offer last year because you told me that, if there was a positive response towards the character you were going to write for me, I would be promoted the following season. But, clearly, that's not the case. I'm not saying that I'm better for the job than the ones you have promoted though. They really deserve it. All I'm saying is, at the end of the day, this is a job for me. It's fun, yes. But it's a job and, if I don't have a steady job, I won't survive in this business. So I need to keep working and I've been given that chance with the album that I'm working on."

"You've completely lost your mind," Brad says in disbelief, "We've already written some episodes with you in it, Chord. What the hell are we going to do with those now?" Chord forces himself to ignore Brad's question and now has a solemn look on his face. "It has been an honour working for you and I wish you guys and the show nothing but the best," Chord says while standing up from his seat. He shakes all of their hands with teary eyes and a smile on his face. He then left the Fox compound for what is now his very last time.


	4. Chapter 4

Dianna was sleeping soundly on her bed when her phone began to ring. She chose to ignore it but woke up, out of her own will, after hearing it ring for the second time. In a daze, she rubs her eyes while laying on her bed, reaches out for her phone and looks at the screen. The call is from Lea who is currently in New York with her family. She accepts the call, closes her eyes and brings the phone to her ear.

"Hello?" Dianna says with a croaky voice, "What's up?" The sounds of cars and busy streets fill the background on the other line which causes Lea to speak louder. "Hey Di, did you hear what happened?" shouts Lea. Now interested in the direction of the conversation, Dianna sits up and opens her eyes. "What? What happened?" Dianna asks immediately, curiosity building up inside of her.

"Chord turned them down! He's not coming back! Mark just told me about it."

"What? Wait. I can't hear you, Lea. Where are you anyways? Why is it so loud?"

"Di, listen to me! Chord. Isn't. Coming. Back! He's not coming back to the show. He turned down Ryan's offer!"

The mention of his name and the news that he will not be coming back to the show being uttered by her very close friend broke her into pieces. Dianna didn't know how to respond back. She sat on her bed staring into blankness as Lea continued to talk on the other line. She slowly dropped her phone and felt tears forming around her eyes. Meanwhile, the background noise on the other line disappeared as if Lea had gone indoors.

"Are you still there?" Lea asks with a softer voice. No response. "Di? A-are you okay? Hello? Do you want me to get on a flight or something so I can -" Dianna shook her head from her daze, picked up her phone and replied, "No, it's okay. I'll be fine." Dianna tries to hold back the sound of her tears from escaping to the other line by covering her mouth with her hand. She didn't know why she was reacting this way to the news of Chord's departure. She knew that it was a possibility, but, the reality of it all completely crushed her.

Though she rejected Chord's feelings towards her, she knew deep inside that she was in fact lying to him and herself. She absent-mindedly told herself that Chord's confession was caused by the stress building up inside of him. That he was simply looking for someone to be with through this difficult time in his life. She chose not to tell him how she truly felt towards him although her heart skipped a beat upon hearing his confession. Dianna, like Chord, could not fathom a life without him in it and the news of him leaving the show killed a part of her. How was she ever going to see him again?

After Lea's call, and the news of Chord departure, Dianna repeatedly tried to get a hold of Chord for weeks without any luck. He was avoiding all contact with the outside world so it seemed. The man who usually had a care-free spirit was slowly disappearing and she wanted to blame Ryan so much for it.

Since she felt that time was running out, she instinctively contacted Chord's brother, Nash. He told Dianna that Chord recently watched a gig of his but did not mention declining Fox's offer to him. The news was a shock to him as well.

With no clue as to where Chord may be, she gave up on her search. She told herself then that, Chord will show up when he's ready and that that time is coming soon.


	5. Chapter 5

Chord has been waiting for Dianna's call for weeks. He thought that she would be the first one to reach out to him but, so far, he has not received a single phone call or message from her. One of two things must have happened, he thought. Chord knew that there's a possibility that Ryan told the whole cast to cut their ties with him due to his decision to leave. But there's also the likely possibility – the one he fears most – that only Dianna has lost interest in keeping any sort of contact with him and that she wants nothing to do with him any longer.

However, rather than wallowing over his situation, he has decided to continue on with his regular daily routines. Keeping in mind that, if the day comes that Dianna is free, he'll be there waiting for her – also a free man. Dianna, free of the show' and Sebastian's hold. Chord, free from Emma and able to love Dianna with all of his heart. And so, at the moment, he has been drowning himself with the tasks at hand.

Recently, Chord has been writing a lot of songs in preparation for his debut album. With the type of year he has been having, Chord had lots of material to work with. However, when writing, all he can ever really think of is Dianna. Many times he would catch himself writing about what he would say to her if she were his or how much he's longing for her to be his. He thought that, if he wrote such songs, and that she inexplicably heard them, she would come be his. Unfortunately, his dream of having a life with Dianna in it cannot be reached at the moment. Especially since his "muse", much to his dislike, is really supposed to be Emma. But, as he promised Dianna, he has been trying to work things out with Emma and has been spending a lot more of his time with her. Giving the relationship a try though it hurts to do so.

Most of his "dates" with Emma consists of eating out and shopping at the trendiest stores in LA. On such days, he can't help but remember simpler times back home where he would sit in his family's living room couch watching sports for most of the day. There were also nights when the whole family would gather around to sing songs in the living room. The only time Chord had ever experienced something remotely close to this was at the Glee set. During their down times, he would take out his guitar (or borrow Mark's) to sing Disney songs with Dianna to the others. Those were the times he wish he could take back now more than ever. No hassle, no stress. Just work, friends, music and, most of all, Dianna.

During these bits of daydream and reminiscence, Emma would catch Chord immediately. "Snap out of it!" Emma would jokingly say to him, which usually led to a quarrel. "Why can't we do something else besides shopping? Don't you have enough clothes?" Chord would snap back assertively. At the end of the day, however, Chord would always apologize for his behavior. Sometimes he catches himself closing his eyes wishing that tomorrow would be different somehow. One where he gets to choose what he wants to do with his life rather than being told what to do.


	6. Chapter 6

_**Note:**_ As most of you have probably noticed, I do try to mirror as many real life events as I can to make the story life-like.

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><p>Having a lot of free time after the tour has given Dianna lots of time to do things in her own pace. Filming the show daily had always been so hectic that, after the tour, she didn't know what to do. Therefore, she decided that the best thing for her to do is to spend more time with Sebastian. Conveniently, Sebastian resides in New York rather than LA where she may bump into Chord and Emma. A situation she was not ready to face at the moment.<p>

Her visit in New York was quite interesting to say the least. Since Captain America – a film Sebastian co-stars in – had just been released, one of his many jobs is to attend the premiere in New York. Since she knew that Sebastian would be busy doing interviews and taking pictures with his castmates, Dianna had asked Jessica Zhor, a close friend of her's, to come with her. Sebastian had gone ahead to the premiere and so Jessica and Dianna were given a limousine to take them to the venue.

"So how are you?" Jessica asks Dianna non-chalantly. "I'm okay, I guess," Dianna tells her while looking out of her side of the limousine window, "Sebastian and I are okay. Why? Why do you ask?" Jessica examined her friend with curiosity. Curious due to the urgency and panicked voice that Dianna seemed to have presented her in response to her question. Jessica noticed a different glow surrounding Dianna and, at the same time, she also saw a hint of sadness in her friend's eyes. "Di, I didn't ask about Sebastian." Jessica plainly points out to Dianna. Now in shock, Dianna looks at Jessica – eyes wide, alarmed and lost. "I said I didn't ask about Sebastian. I was just asking about you. How are YOU?" Jessica asks her with more persistence.

Dianna lets out a deep sigh, closes her eyes and quickly opens them. A somber look now appears on Dianna's face as she takes another deep breath in preparation for what she was about to tell her friend. "I don't know what's wrong with me. But… I have a question for you. Just between the two of us," she tells Jessica. Jessica leans in closer to Dianna and gave her a nod. Dianna exhales quickly and continues, "Have you ever felt like… like, when you think of someone. Anybody. I mean… you're thinking about this person and it makes you happy inside. And everyone sees that you're happy but they don't know why you're happy. But… that person that you're thinking about… isn't supposed to be the one you're thinking… about? Does that make any sense to you?"

Upon hearing Dianna's confession, Jessica simply lets out a smile and holds her friend's hand. Jessica knew that Dianna has been torn for quite a while now and has been having problems confronting her feelings towards this "person" (a person she only knew as "the other guy" and never by name). It's about damn time, Jessica thought, that Dianna had finally realized where her heart truly belongs and that it is not with Sebastian.


	7. Chapter 7

After working out at the gym and finishing his errands, Emma asked Chord to eat out with her at some trendy restaurant that he doesn't care to remember the name of. Though the food was impeccable and the workers were friendly, he couldn't help but feel irritated at the amount of attention they were both getting from the customers around them. Unlike Emma, he enjoys quiet one-on-one dates where he can be with his date without other people lurking around. Therefore, in order to catch a break from the chaos that surrounded him, he excused himself and made his way to the bathroom leaving his phone exposed on their table.

Meanwhile, Emma started signing autographs for the other costumers in the restaurant – completely ignoring the fact that Chord's phone is on the table. As customers began to double in numbers, surrounding Emma and Chord's table completely, a mysterious-looking man in a blue baseball hat joined the crowd. He was the only one looking at the phone on the table. The man knew it was Chord's and thought that such a phone costs a lot of money if sold to the right buyer. Almost as if it were an immediate instinct, the man picked up Chord's phone while making sure that no one was watching him.

However, just when the man was about to open the phone, Chord pushed his way through the crowd (knocking Emma down to the floor) and grabbed the phone as quickly as possible from the stranger. "That's mine, sir," Chord tells the customer in a polite manner. The man, in shock and embarassment, began to apologize. Security quickly came over and took the man away from the table. The rest of the customers were asked to return to their tables as well. Once the crowd had died down, Chord helped Emma up and helped her sit back down. "A-are you okay? I'm so sorry," he tells Emma apologetically. Emma, on the other hand, seems none to pleased with Chord's actions.

"You just ran over me to save your phone? Are you crazy?"

"I'm... I'm sorry. I panicked. I didn't want him taking my phone and there's a lot of people in here. He would have gotten away if I didn't get to him as fast as I did."

Chord began to feel guilty and ashamed of himself. He didn't know what had gotten into him. He had nothing to hide from Emma. Nothing on his phone anyway. But just as Emma was about to continue lecturing him, Chord's phone started to ring and vibrate on the table. The couple looked at the phone and Chord immediately saw the name flashing on the screen. As he was about to pick it up, Emma takes the phone from the table and ignores the call.

"Why did you do that for?" he asks her, holding in his frustration as much as he could. "Why not? She shouldn't be calling you right now anyway. You two don't even work together anymore so it can't be anything important," Emma tells him matter of factly.

"I was expecting her call."

"Why?"

"Because she's my friend and I haven't talked to her in a while. Why do you need to know?"

"Because I'm your girlfriend!"

The amount of chatter in the restaurant suddenly died down. The attention was once again, for all the wrong reasons, on Chord and Emma.

Calming down from her pit of rage, Emma closes her eyes and lets out a deep burdened sigh. Chord looks on with a worried and confused look on his face. "What? What's wrong?" he asks her.

"She's been calling you, you know. Lots of times. Especially a few weeks ago. You leave your phone a lot so I usually ignore those calls and delete them from the phone log. I thought she would have stopped calling you by now but..."

"You what?"

_ The amount of anger inside of Chord had finally bursted out. Without thinking twice, Chord took his phone from Emma and walked out of the restaurant leaving Emma by herself._


	8. Chapter 8

_**Note:**_ Thank you all SO MUCH for your feedback/ reviews. I'm completely floored by it. This is the first time I've ever written an RPF since I usually write original pieces of work. But when you're inspired, you just have to go for it. So thank you once again!

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><p>Chord needed to get out of LA. It was becoming unbearable for him to see the paparazzi waiting on his every move. He also didn't want to face Emma who, he thought - before the incident at the restaurant, was someone he could rely on. Thus, in order to rid himself of the anxiety that had built up inside of him, Chord accepted an invite to watch his friend (and now former Glee co-star), Matthew Morrison, perform in a one-night only event in New York.<p>

The venue was full and, as soon as Chord stepped inside, he could feel the positive energy surrounding him already. A few of the audience members immediately recognized him and asked to take pictures with him. Surprisingly he didn't seem to mind it that night. There's a new air of optimism surrounding him and Chord knew that this was partly because Emma wasn't around. As he gladly took in the atmosphere around him, he felt someone's hand on his shoulder. It was light and gentle - that of a woman's touch. A touch that was very familiar to him. When he turned around to see who it was, he was delighted to see Dianna smiling and standing in front of him.

"Hey, C! How are you?" the beautiful, and casually dressed, woman asked Chord. "Ms. Agron! I didn't know you'd be here," he said with a smile that he could not seem to get rid of. "Well I'm doing a few interviews here in NYC for the movie so… when Matthew asked me to come see his show, I said, 'Why not?' But how about you?" Dianna asked Chord, scanning the backstage around with her eyes, "Where's Emma?"

Chord's smile slowly faded and a disappointed look soon replaced it. "Flying solo tonight," he tells her in a straightforward tone. Meanwhile, Dianna couldn't help but feel elated at the thought of Emma and Chord separating (as much as it disappointed her that she would feel this way in the first place). She was not usually the type to feel jealous or bitter but everything seemed to be different when it came to Chord.

"Is she busy?" she asks him casually. "Nope. Just… not her scene," he says without meaning to be too blunt, "Anyway, don't bother worrying about Emma. I can do things without her, can't I?" By then, Dianna could sense that Chord was upset and chose not to reply. She simply nodded and hoped that he would continue on. However, as he was about to continue speaking, an announcement blared out of the PA system asking guests to make their way to their seats.

Before attending the concert event, Dianna contemplated on who she would be sitting beside. Since Sebastian was still busy with his prior work-related commitments, she was worried that she may be sitting beside a regular concert-goer who would bombard her with several questions. In any case, she was pleased when she found Chord among the crowd backstage instead. Suddenly, Dianna didn't feel like she was alone.

Once they took their seats, they were both focused on enjoying the show and watching Matthew perform. Though silence between two people may make others feel awkward, both Dianna and Chord didn't seem to mind. They both enjoyed being in each other's company once again. It had only been around a month ago since the tour ended but it felt like it had been longer. The time they had apart was necessary, but, being with one another was even more.

When the show ended, both Dianna and Chord made their way backstage once again to congratulate Matthew. Unfortunately, a crowd slowly began to gather around the backstage entrance. Afraid of losing Dianna in the crowd, Chord took Dianna's hand quickly and held on to it as tightly as he could as Dianna led them both backstage. She smiled at the thought that, if they were together, she wouldn't miss Chord's touch since he would be holding her close to him all the time. But her conscience naturally kicked in and she remembered Sebastian. All her hopeful thoughts blown out of the window.


	9. Chapter 9

This is quite short. I do promise to post about 2 new chapter tomorrow since I'm off from work the whole week! Yay!

Once again, thank you for supporting and sending in your comments about this RPF! Really appreciate it :D

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><p>The day after Matthew Morrison's performance, Chord caught himself sitting on his hotel bed in NYC. His thoughts wandering and revolving around Dianna. He knew that it was impossible for him to spend more time with her seeing that she's in a relationship with Sebastian, but, he also knew that he had to try. As he continued to let his mind linger on all of the possibilities, his phone rang. He immediately walked over to the side table beside his bed, picked up his phone and answered it without reading the name that displayed on the screen - his thoughts and focus somewhere else.<p>

"Di?" Chord calls out mindlessly.

"No… it's Emma. Were you expecting her call?"

"Why are you calling me?"

"Listen… I want to apologize… for what I did. I'm so sorry. I got jealous. I don't even remember why I did it in the first place."

For the very first time in his relationship with Emma, he would have never thought that she would apologize to him. He was caught off guard. Though he had made up his mind about his feelings towards her and his feelings towards Dianna, he still had a soft spot for people who ask for his forgiveness. He could never build up enough courage to reject or disregard them.

"A-are you still there?" Emma asks him nervously, patiently awaiting his reply. Chord lets out a deep and stressed sigh. "You know… I've given you so many chances before and, every single time I did, you always go back to making me feel like a… like a servant. What am I to you anyway? Did you ever think of me as your boyfriend? Or am I just some prize to you?" Chord asks Emma with a hint of anger in his voice. "Where is this coming from? This isn't you," she tells him. "This is me. The sad thing is, you only noticed it now," replies Chord.

He could hear Emma sobbing on the other line but, surprisingly, he didn't feel the need to console her. "I can't be with you anymore, Emma," he tells her, "I wouldn't be honest with myself if I kept this up. I'm not happy with the direction we're going as a couple. We can't always live like every day is a war zone of some kind."

Before she could reply, Chord ended his conversation with Emma over the phone. It was enough. He didn't want to hear her explanations anymore. He wanted to be free from her grasp on him and, finally, he was. A smile escaped his lips and knew that the pages were finally turning - it was heading to something beautiful.

Later on that afternoon, Chord made his way to the airport to head back to LA. Though he wasn't ready to face Emma, he knew that he had to go back to record more songs for his album in order to release it before the end of this year. Just then, his cellphone rang for the second time that day. Nervously, he fished his phone out of his pocket and, this time, cautiously looked at the display on the screen.

His face froze on the name that appeared before him. Should he or shouldn't he answer the call?


	10. Chapter 10

Thanks again for all of your kind comments :)

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><p>"Hello?"<p>

"Hey, Chord, how are you?"

The familiar voice sent chills down his spine. Chord found it funny how Ryan Murphy, of all people, could still make him feel nervous even when the noose around his neck no longer existed. He cleared his throat quickly and replied to Ryan with a hint of hesitation, "Uhh… I'm… good, Ryan, how are you?"

Deep down inside, Chord hoped that Ryan was calling to ask him to return to the show. But, sadly, he knew that the writers had passed that phase – for what seemed – eons ago. They were over him and that was the unfortunate truth that he was slowly realizing. "Not bad," Ryan tells him, "Look, Chord, I'm not gonna take any more of your time. I just wanted to let you know that we have the premiere for the movie coming up and hoped that you would join the rest of us at Westwood. So are you in, buddy?"

The rest of the conversation was a blur to Chord. He didn't clearly remember how it ended. However, he did know one thing - he agreed to go. When Ryan asked him, Dianna's face popped into his head. He knew then that this was fate calling and that he had to see her again.

His chest began to feel tight at the thought of seeing everyone again. They never gave Chord a going-away party and he would never agree if he was ever asked for one. Bidding anyone farewell was a burden and Chord had trained himself into saying 'see you later' instead. Goodbyes seemed too "final" and "permanent" to him. Thus, he wasn't ready to face the whole cast and to say 'goodbye' to them yet.

Meanwhile, on that very day, Dianna sat on a chair near her windowsill. The premiere was a few days away and, though she had everything set, she caught herself thinking about Chord. She wondered whether he would come, or, better yet, if he was asked to attend the event at all. Her hands travelled and hovered over her cellphone on the table – debating on whether or not she should call or text him. Just then, her phone vibrated on the table. Her heart skipping a beat. As she looked at the screen, she immediately frowned at the name that appeared before her.

"Hey, Seb," Dianna greeted Sebastian in an unintentionally dull manner. "A-are you okay?" Sebastian asks her worriedly, "You don't sound too good." Dianna shakes her head and presses on with the conversation, "No, I'm okay. What's up?" "Nothing. Just thought I'd give you a call. I miss hearing the sound of your voice. That's all," he tells her plainly. Before dating Sebastian, Dianna was told by others that Sebastian was very blunt, manipulative and aggressive at times. However, as they dated, she slowly discovered that he had a milder side and that he reserves this for people who he feels closer to.

"You have your premiere in a few days, right?"

"Yeah! In a few days. Why? Did you… want to come with?"

"Oh… well… I would love to but —-"

Another woman's voice surfaced in the background on the other line and Dianna immediately knew what was going on. "I'm assuming you're busy at the moment there?" she tells Sebastian, controlling her anger successfully. The woman's voice seemed closer to Sebastian now and she lets out a loud giggle.

"You must really miss my voice that much, huh?" Dianna tells him, "You miss it so much that you got another girl to spend time with you?". Before Sebastian could reply, Dianna ends the call and throws her phone on the table in anger. She then closed her eyes, took 5 long breaths and opened her eyes once again. At that very moment, Dianna felt a tear fall on her cheek and, before she knew it, tears poured down from her eyes like rain.


	11. Chapter 11

Longest chapter to date, guys ahahahaha. Thanks for the reviews once again!

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><p>It was the day of the premiere and Chord woke up earlier than he would on a normal day. For some unknown reason, the knot in his stomach had not disappeared since Ryan's phone call a few days ago. Also, though he seemed sure at first, Ryan and the others didn't know that Chord was now on the fence about attending the premiere.<p>

The night before, Chord was devising several plans for his "escape". He thought of every ridiculous excuse in the book – stomach ache, migraine, hang over, suit being lost somewhere in his closet (or better yet, Narnia). All he knew was that the anticipation was killing him slowly. For one thing, Chord wasn't sure if his friends would welcome him back with open arms. He also didn't like the thought of photographers taking pictures of him while he makes his way into the theatre. He wanted to be invisible.

At a loss, Chord calls up his brother, Nash, to meet him at the gym and hoped that time would fly by so that he would miss the premiere completely. "I'm surprised you called me up," Nash tells Chord, "You know I'm not the working out-type of guy." Jokingly, Chord tells Nash that he was a last resort and would not have called him up if everyone wasn't so busy. Nash knew then that something was wrong. "Hold on a sec," Nash's curiosity now growing by the second, "What do you mean everyone's busy?" "Oh… the guys from Glee are doing press conferences and interviews for the movie and then they have the premiere tonight," Chord tells him plainly. "And… you're not going?" Nash asks him. Chord simply shakes his head.

"Man, are you nuts or what? You're in the movie, right?"

"Yeah, I am."

"You have a duet in that concert, right? I mean, they didn't delete that out, right?"

"No, they wouldn't. I… I don't think so."

"And you're not going to show up?"

"Yeah!"

"Are you out of your mind? Do you know how many people will be at that premiere, man? Do you know how many fans are going to show up looking for you? Do you know how pissed off they'll be?"

Chord considered Nash's comments and knew that he had to be there. He knew that some of the fans will be asking about him. He also thought of what the cast would say if they were asked on the red carpet about his absense and, quite frankly, he didn't want to be a bigger burden on them at that point. Chord looked at the clock that hung up on the gym wall and realized that, if he was going to the premiere, he needed to go home and get ready. Fast.

After grabbing a quick snack, Chord ran to his room to grab a suit and a pair of pants to wear. He thought that, since he had not worn the suit before in public appearances, no one would notice that it was old. Since time was running out, he also decided not to wear a tie and ran out the door without checking if he looked decent enough or not. He drove to the venue almost in a maniacal manner since he knew that, if he arrived later than everybody else, he was going to be in trouble.

Once he had given his car keys to the valet attendant, he patted down his suit, took a deep breath in and walked towards the entrance of the venue. As he got closer to the red carpet, he realized that the cast were still outdoors being interviewed and photographed. His surrounding looked similar to, what he thought of, as the zoo. Personal assistants, publicists, photographers, interviewers and many others passed by him in a rush. But, at that very instant - amidst all the chaos, Chord saw Dianna.

Dianna wore a long and plunging tulip wrap sleeveless dress and was being photographed by countless photographers. Through the loud and busy scene before her, she seemed at peace and posed with class and poise. Though Chord had seen her at events similar to this one before, Dianna seemed to have a different aura and air about her.

No matter how many times he tried, Chord could not take his eyes away from her. He felt like a child almost. His feet were planted firmly on the ground, he didn't want the moment to end. "Umm Mr. Overstreet?" a coordinator asks Chord, interrupting the moment. He shakes his head and looks at the worried coordinator with a slight smile. "Please make your way to the carpet. The photogs are ready for you," informs the co-ordinator.

Once Chord stepped up to the photo line, cameras began to flash in front of him and, while pictures of him were being taken, he scanned the area for Dianna. He had lost her. Just then, Chris Colfer approached him and touched Chord's left shoulder. "Chord! How are you?" Chris greeted him with delight, "We thought you weren't coming. Glad you are though!" "Glad I'm here," was all Chord could tell him. A photographer quickly approached them and took his picture with Chris. In a blink of an eye, Chris bid his farewell as he had another interviewer to go to. Chord was, once again, alone.

Though he is, technically, a part of the movie, Chord hoped that no one would approach him for an interview. He knew what questions they were going to ask him and he wasn't ready to answer them just yet. He continued along the line, signed autographs and met a bunch of the other cast members along the way – Mark Salling, Darren Criss, Amber Riley and Ashley Fink to name a few. Sadly, there was no sign of Dianna anywhere in sight.

Before entering the theatre, Chord was asked to stand for more pictures near the movie poster. At that very moment, as if someone from up above was listening to his every prayer, he saw her. From the corner of his eye. She was talking to an interviewer and was being filmed. Just then, as if she knew that he was looking at her, Dianna was looking towards his direction - searching the crowd for… someone. Meanwhile, a male coordinator approaches Chord and directs him to the theatre. As he walks towards the entrance with the coordinator, he sees Dianna looking at him again, a smile now plastered on her face. And, just like that, the moment was gone.


	12. Chapter 12

So I posted this a day earlier on Tumblr and completely forgot to post it here last night :S Sorry, guys lol.

Thank you for all of the comments again, guys. You have no idea how much those comments mean to me and this story.

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><p>Once the cast were on their seats in the theatre, Ryan said a few words to the audience before the movie began. Chord was sitting a row behind the cast since he was unable to find a seat beside them. Fortunately, he found himself sitting behind Dianna and gave her a small tap on the shoulder out of instinct. Dianna turned to face him and smiled at Chord. "Hey," Dianna greets him, "How are you?" Chord could not help but smile back. "I'm doing pretty well. You?" he asks her. "Not bad. Tired but not bad," she tells him with a laugh. Before he could say anything else to Dianna, the lights in the theatre dimmed and the noise level of the audience members died down. Dianna waved at Chord, put on her 3D glasses and turned to face the screen.<p>

During the movie, Chord could not help but remember all of the fond memories he had locked up inside his head from the tour. He remembered all of the pranks that he would pull on the others with Mark. He remembered the conversations and inside jokes that he had with Darren, Chris and Harry during their down times. But, most of all, he remembered all of the moments – whether they were only for a little while or not – that he had with Dianna on and off stage.

Though he was told in the beginning of the tour by the rest of the cast that the future shows would gradually become more spontaneous, he found himself in shock and awe at how random it really started to get. There were times, during the shows, when Dianna would dance around him when they were directed to "sit and be romantic". She would also, at times, fix Chord's hair before they performed "Lucky" and would tell him how handsome he looked. Those were the moments that lifted his spirits up the most when, in reality, he was physically and emotionally drained inside.

They were also on tour when Chord received the news that he was not being considered for a position as a regular on the show. The news broke his heart and knew that his time with the rest of the cast was running out.

Dianna was one of the first ones to notice a change in Chord and she took it upon herself to help him cope with it. She would ask Chord to bring out his guitar during rehearsals so that they could sing TV show theme songs together or write a random song about a cast member. She would even start a conversation with him, while they were on stage, as the others would perform. Dianna would mention her pets or ask him about his siblings and asked him how it was like growing up with them. She did everything in her power to help prevent Chord from looking transparent to people. To show the world that he's okay and that he wasn't hurting inside.

And now he sat on his seat in the theatre, watching that very tour he had been on for months, with no more moments with the cast to look forward to. What he had left was a handful of memories from the tour, which he hoped would not flutter away. Just then, he heard a familiar tune playing in the background while watching the movie. Then he heard his voice and realized that "Lucky" was playing. He took a deep breath and sighed. While he watched the performance on screen, Dianna quickly glanced back at him with a smile and gave him a thumbs up. That was all he needed. At that moment, he felt like he mattered.

After the movie had finished, the cast (including Chord) and those who were involved in the film gathered at a secluded room in the theatre. Much to Chord's delight, the press was not invited to the function. This meant that he had an opportunity to privately speak to his friends before leaving for the night.

As he made through the crowd, and held short conversations with the rest of the cast, Dianna wasn't too far away from him to reach. She stood alone, almost to the side, as if she had been waiting for him the whole time. Chord smiled as he approached her and gave her a hug. One that, not only had Chord been longing for, but also Dianna.

"You were a busy bee tonight, mister," indicated Dianna, "I didn't get a single picture with you on the red carpet!" "I didn't know you were looking for me," Chord tells her in a slightly flirtatious manner. "Who said I was?" Dianna replied back in the same tone.

"H-how are you, anyway? I know we saw each other a couple of days ago, but, you look… different."

"That's because I'm wearing a gown and tons of make up on my face today, Chord."

"No. There's something else… I just can't tell what it is."

"I don't know what you're talking about."

Chord's curiosity became heightened by her reply. She seemed to be hiding something from him but he wasn't sure what it could be about. For some odd reason, he felt like their conversation was becoming more intense. Something is bothering Dianna and he wanted to help.

To change the subject completely, Dianna quickly thought of another topic. But only one seemed to pop into her head at the time. "Why did you leave, Chord?" Dianna asked him in a stern and almost disappointed tone.

"Honestly?"

"Yes, honestly."

"Because of you."


	13. Chapter 13

Sorry to keep you guys hanging. It needed to be done. But thanks again for the comments! :)

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><p>Dianna was caught off guard. Everything was happening so fast that she needed for everything to stop or slow down. Just a few days ago, she discovered that Sebastian was cheating on her and, now, Chord had told her that she was the reason for his departure on the show.<p>

She tried to read Chord's thoughts as she gazed deeply into his eyes in hopes of seeing some sort of sign. However, Dianna quickly found that Chord seemed to be more at peace rather than seeing feelings of resentment or anger. He was smiling with his eyes and his gaze was directly into her own eyes. She knew then that he was trying to read her thoughts too.

"I-I don't understand you right now," Dianna tells him in a sort of panic, "What are you talking about?" She looks around the room to see if anyone had noticed the intensity of their conversation. So far, no one seemed to be noticing. She lightly grabs hold of Chord's arm and pulls him to a more secluded corner of the room. This, strangely enough, felt like a deja vu for the both of them. The moment felt similar to that of the night Chord told Dianna about his feeling towards her. Was she being given a second chance to let Chord know how she felt about him?

Dianna shook her head and pressed on, "You can't back down now. You've said too much. You have no choice but to tell me what's going on." Chord could not help but smile at her. Dianna's intensity strangely intrigued him in a way and this annoyed Dianna. Sensing her frustration at the situation, Chord lets out a heavy sigh and tells her, "Listen... I've told you before, Di. I've told you that I admire you and that I would do anything to make you happy and I would -"

"That has nothing to do with you quitting your job, Chord. That was your job. Why would you quit your job for a girl? Let alone me?" Dianna asked Chord. Her frustration towards him slowly increasing.

"Because I can't just stand there while your boyfriend visits you on set and shows everyone how disgustingly charming he is. That's why."

"Are you kidding me right now?"

"No! He did that while we were all on tour and he's bound to do that again when you get back to LA."

"So you're telling me that, that sort of public display of affection annoys you?"

"If it's someone else that you're showing it to, yes."

"So you basically wasted a perfectly amazing job because you were jealous."

"No."

"What? You don't make any sense!"

"I quit that job because I love you too much, okay? I love you. So if that makes me a bitter and jealous man, then be it!"

The world came to a halt then and there. To the both of them, they were the only ones in the room. Nothing else seemed to matter. Chord was in just as much shock as Dianna was at the sound of his words echoing back to him. _Did I really say that out loud just now?_ Chord asked himself.

"You... love me?"

"Yes."

"But... that can mean anything. Just because you love someone doesn't mean that you have romantic feelings for them."

"This is so different from the kind of love I've felt for anybody else, Di."

Dianna did not understand why Chord had been bottling up all of his feelings for her inside. Since they have known each other long enough, she thought that he would have told her before Alex came into her life. Better yet, when she was free to love him back after she broke up with Alex. Rather than living with those questions clouding her every thought, Dianna decided to press on and ask Chord to explain himself some more.

"When did you start feeling this way?"

"Right when we were filming the wedding episode."

"That was before I met Alex."

"Yes."

"So why didn't you tell me as soon as you felt differently about me?"

"Would you have taken me seriously then?"

"Yes! Why not?"

"You would have accepted what I had to say?"

"Yeah!"

"You would have said 'I love you' back?"

"Yes!"

The tables had turned dramatically all of a sudden. Chord was now the one that was in shock at Dianna's confession.

"You would have?"

"No."

"Be honest with yourself, Dianna."

"I-I don't know."

Chord, heart-broken and defeated, looked away from Dianna as he tried to hold back his tears. He was so frustrated with himself since he knew that he would have had the chance to be with Dianna if it weren't for his nervousness back then. If he would have told her earlier, they would be together now and he would have accepted Ryan's offer to stay on the show. It suddenly dawned on Chord that he now had more regrets that would last him a lifetime.

In the meantime, Jenna Ushkowitz approached the two of them – not knowing what they had been arguing about for the last few minutes – with a friendly smile. "Hey, guys, they said it's almost time to head out," she tells them. She then looks at Dianna and says, "Di, we have interviews early in the morning so -" "I have to go," Dianna tells Chord quickly and walks away from him and Jenna. She quickly looked at Chord with confusion. "What... what just happened here?" Jenna asked Chord. "Nothing." Chord told her as he also made his way out of the room.


	14. Chapter 14

Unfortunately, like all stories, this one will come to an end soon. BUT I have two Fabrevans fics that will be written in the future (one will be a one-shot fic).

Anyway, thanks again, guys!

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><p><em>Chord searched the room to see if Dianna was still around. Surprisingly enough, though she had stormed off away from him, she had not left yet (probably out of her own will). She was with the rest of their friends and were approaching him to bid their farewells. As each of his friends hugged him, Chord noticed that Dianna was further away from him than everyone else. He kept his eyes on her and knew that she was becoming uncomfortable from all of the attention he was giving her.<em>

_ "It's a shame that we won't see you on set on Monday, Chord," Lea started, "And I'm going to miss James Earl Jones on the set too." The rest of his friends laughing in unison in response to Lea's remark. Chord smiled at them and nodded. Dianna was now further from the rest of the group and was talking to Ryan Murphy to the side. "Well, I guess this is it, guys," Chord tells them with a heavy sigh, "Good luck and all the best!" Mark gave him a quick pat on the shoulder and watched as his friends slowly parted ways with him. Once they had all gone, Chord made his way towards the door. _

_ But something inside of him would not let him leave. Thus, Chord decided to look behind him once more to get one last glimpse at Dianna. Much to his surprise, his gaze towards her was met with Dianna's gaze looking back at him. Dianna looked at Chord with a solemn look on her face. He forced himself to smile at her, which she quickly responded to with a slight smile of her own. He nodded to bid her farewell and she kindly nodded back at him. Her eyes were speaking volumes to him which he forced to ignore completely. His heart ached at the sight of the woman he loves the most. He never knew it was going to be this hard to leave her. _

_ As Chord continued to walk towards the exit, he heard that familiar voice calling out his name. "Chord!" Dianna shouted from across the room with more force than usual. He quickly turned around – heart pounding right out of his chest – and watched as Dianna ran towards him in urgency. Once she had caught up with Chord, she placed her hands on both sides of his face and kissed him passionately. He reached out and touched her face as he kissed her back. The room was still and all eyes were on the two of them. All was well._

Just then, Chord closed and opened his eyes repeatedly. Images began to disappear and appear before him. Once he had complete control of his eyes, all he saw was darkness around him. He felt beads of sweat on his forehead. It was all a dream, he told himself disappointingly.

Chord had thought a lot about the conversation he had with Dianna at the premiere before he fell asleep. He was trying to figure out where he had gone wrong. Was it when he decided to quit his job? Was it the moment he decided not to pursue a relationship with Dianna when he had the chance to? Or was it the moment he chose to love her at all? Everything happened so fast that he wasn't given enough time to explain himself to her. And, unfortunately, he had blown it once again. This time, he was afraid that he won't be given any more chances.

The following day was a busy day for Chord. He had been asked to join Kevin, Cory, Darren, Harry, Jenna and Ashley at the Teen Choice Awards. Thankfully, Dianna had chosen not to attend the event since the cast were due to film Glee the day after the awards show. This was a good opportunity for Chord to ask his friends about Dianna and what he should do next in order to win her heart completely.

As he entered the lounge, he was first greeted by Jenna who attended the event with her boyfriend, Michael Trevino. "So can you please tell me what happened yesterday night now?" Jenna pleaded to Chord. "Why?" he asked her with confusion. Jenna gave Chord an annoyed look and said, "Because when you left last night, we found Dianna crying off to the side and she wouldn't tell us what was going on. And the last person she talked to that night was you."

"She was crying?" Chord asked Jenna worriedly.

"Yes! So, now, speak."

"I can't… I can't tell you, Jenna. I really can't. This is between Dianna and I."

"What if I told you that I have a hunch?"

"Hunch about what?"

"Hunch about why you guys were talking last night."

"You don't. I know you don't."

"Oh yeah? You don't think I notice the way you look at her on set? Or during the tour? You were so transparent, Chord. Everyone could tell. Even Dianna sensed it. That's what the girls talk about all the time. We try to get something out of Dianna but she won't budge."

"Jenna, that's a hunch, alright? Doesn't mean I'm going to confirm or deny it."

"What if I tell you that I know something you don't about Dianna?"


	15. Chapter 15

I'm soooo sorry it took me so long to write this chapter. I wanted the last 2 chapters to be worthy of being the last 2 chapters lol. Did that make any sense? Anyway, this _is _the 2nd last chapter and the next one will be the last. Not sure when I'll post the last one yet since I've been adding and editing that a lot too. But thank you for being so patient! Thank you for all of your nice comments! Just thank you!

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><p>Chord had known for a while that he's not the most subtle person in the world. Within the cast of Glee, he was the most transparent of them all. He's easily read by others since all of his joy and frustrations show up on his face immediately. Dianna picked this up upon meeting him on set for the first time as he recalled.<p>

They had just finished shooting "Empire State of Mind" outdoors and Chord was standing by himself outside the trailers during their break. He looked around the set almost as if he feared being there. Dianna, without hesitation, approached him with that warm smile of hers and greeted him in hopes of making him feel more comfortable. She shook his hand firmly and introduced herself to him. "Oh y-you don't have to introduce yourself to me," Chord said with a chuckle and embarrassment, "My sisters are big fans of the show and my youngest sister is a fan of yours." She looked at him in interest. "Wait a second, youngest sister? So how many sisters do you have?" she asked him. "Well, there's six of us in total. I'm the third one born into the family. I have an older brother, an older sister and three younger sisters." he simply stated. "Six?" she said in amazement, "That is amazing! You guys must have a lot of fun when you're all together!"

From then on, Chord found himself more open to the other cast members on set. All because of that one conversation with Dianna. Though he was quiet and timid at first, he began to allow himself to become more approachable to the rest of the cast members who quickly became his closest friends. However, he always treated Dianna differently. He gave her all of his attention when they were in a conversation together. As if nothing else mattered. Unfortunately, it all changed when Dianna began seeing Alex. Since she was spending a lot more time off set filming for "I Am Number Four", she had been spending more time with Alex which in turn made it impossible for Chord to see her on the Glee set.

And now, Jenna was about to deliver a possible revelation that – by the looks of it – could help knew that there was something "different" about Dianna the night before. He saw the way she smiled and interacted with those around her. He noticed the glow that illuminated from her at the premiere while she stood perfectly as the cameras flickered. Jenna knew the story behind Dianna's sudden burst of additional optimism and he wanted to know exactly why. He _had_ to know why.

"Hey, guys, what's going on?" Darren cheerfully greeted Chord and Jenna from afar. As Darren quickly approached them, Chord attempted to hide the confused and worried look that seemed to have appeared on his face. "What's going on?" asked Darren – sensing that there was something bothering Chord. Jenna gave Darren a disappointed look, which surprisingly gave away the answer to his question. "Ohhhh! It's about Dianna, isn't it?" Darren asked, looking at Chord. "H-how did you know?" Chord asked him in shock and confusion. Darren gave Chord a slightly annoyed look and said, "Dude, it's so obvious. You can see it from miles away. We all knew!"

"Yeah. What he said," Cory added in as he joined Chord, Darren and Jenna, "what are we talking about?" "Guess." Jenna replied with a slight chuckle. Cory observed each of their faces and noticed the difference between the expression on Chord's face from the others. "Ahhh... Dianna problems?" Chord looked at Cory in shock. If they all knew, Chord thought, Dianna must have known about his feelings towards her all this time.

"So if you all knew, why didn't you guys tell me?" Chord asked them with a slight hint of frustration. "I don't know... I thought you were taking things slow." Darren told Chord. Jenna shook her head in disagreement. "No. With Dianna, you do not take things slow. One minute she's single, and the next, someone's swept her off of her feet," explains Jenna, "When you find a woman like Dianna, you don't let her go. You just don't." Chord was now directing his gaze on an empty space. He was reflecting and considering his next move – if there were any left to make at all. "We were all rooting for you, Chord," Cory told him. "Every night, after the shows, we hope you'd just sweep her off of her feet and hold her in your arms and live happily ever after." Jenna added, which caused the boys to look at her strangely. "Okay, the girls, hoped for you to do that." Jenna rebutted.

Not being able to process the growing severity of the situation, Chord found a couch nearby and sat down. He sunk himself extremely low on the couch and let out a heavy sigh. "What do I do now? What the hell am I going to do? I messed it up," he finally told himself, "I messed up my chances with her. I mean, I must be kidding myself. She would never fall in love with some unemployed guy from Tenessee." Darren, who was now sitting beside Chord, began fishing around the pockets of his blazer. After awhile, Darren took out his phone. "I beg to differ, Mr. Overstreet," he tells Chord, "Check this out."

Darren opened the YouTube application on his phone and typed in a few phrases on the search bar. When he found the video he was looking for, he passed his phone on to Chord. Jenna and Cory huddled around Darren and Chord to watch the video as well. Once the video began to play, Chord immediately saw the woman on the screen before him. It was Dianna and she was being interviewed by a woman who is apparently from E! Entertainment News.

Dianna spoke of her hair – how different it has been for her and how much she enjoys it. _She looks beautiful, _Chord thought. Then, much to Chord's surprise, the interviewer asked Dianna regarding his departure from the show. This, unlike the other interviews he had seen her in before, was the very first time that an interviewer had asked Dianna about him.

"You know, I'll see- I'll see him around," Dianna tells the interviewer, "This isn't the last for me and Chordy. So... I love him. He's right over there. He looks so handsome." As Darren slowly took away his phone from Chord's grasp, Chord found himself staring at emptiness once again. "She... said she loves me," he tells himself and then looked at his friends, "She loves me." Darren patted Chord's back to help console his friend. "So... Chordy," Cory said with a slight chuckle, "what's your next move?" Chord buried his face into his own hands and considered his now depleating options.

The rest of the award show was a blur for Chord. He remembered walking on stage to accept an award on behalf of the whole Glee cast and crew. But everything stopped making sense to him during and after the show. All he could think about was Dianna and her interview and those precious seconds that meant so much more to him than anything else. Upon reviewing the video repeatedly in his head, he also felt a pang of pride that she made an effort to point him out among the crowd to the interviewer. _She loves me_, he tells himself, _she really does._

Chord joined the rest of the cast at an after-party. Though he suggested that they all went home due to the busy schedule they had ahead of them, his friends insisted in spending more time with him before he flew back to Tenessee in the morning. "Before I go," Chord tells them, "I need you guys to help me with something."


	16. Chapter 16

Last chapter of this RPF! Hope you all enjoyed reading this as much as I enjoyed writing it.

Please keep an eye out for the two new fics I'll be writing very, very soon!

Thank you, guys, for reading and commenting again! :D

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><p>Fate plays a crucial role in people's lives and Chord is no exception to it. He's been through hell and back and, yet, he stands stronger than ever for the first time in months. After quitting Glee, he's been given a handful of opportunities. He's been given an opportunity to write his own music and has recently landed a role as a teacher in a show called "The Middle". He knew his place in the world for once and he had control over his own life. Fate was indeed on his side in regards to his career. The only thing fate didn't seem to help him with was finding that special someone to share those joys and triumphs with.<p>

The night before, at an award show after-party, Jenna had told Chord that Dianna was no longer with Sebastian. Apparently, Sebastian cheated on her with someone in New York while Dianna was in LA. Upon hearing the news, Chord was livid and visibly frustrated. He knew that a man like Sebastian was capable of cheating and lying but reserved the thought that Sebastian would have the heart to do that to Dianna.

He could not even begin to imagine how heart broken Dianna must be. After working with her for a year, Chord knew Dianna pretty well. He knew that there's more to her story than she lets people on. She's reserved most of the time when asked about her family and doesn't like to mention her present or past relationships. All of these little things made Chord love her more. She's exactly what he needs. Someone who, regardless of their popularity, manages to stay under the radar and chooses to live a normal, average life. Someone he could bring back home to Tennessee with him to meet his family. Or someone who would be open to living somewhere away from the busy streets of LA. Dianna, he thought, is the one that he had been looking for and this was his last chance to win her over.

He also considered the possibility that she would reject him. Chord considered moving to a remote island but immediately realized how much that would cost him. He also considered changing his name but knew that that would not help him much either. The only place he could really run to was his family and so, in preparation for the worst, he bought a plane ticket back to Tennessee.

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><p>Dianna woke up that morning feeling strange. She didn't know exactly what it was that was bothering her but she knew it was something. The night before, she had a dream about a man who was waiting for her in an empty hall. She was wearing a white dress and the man, who's face she could not see due to the darkness, was wearing a suit. The man offered his hand to her and, before she could touch him, she had woken up from her slumber. Though she knew it was a dream, she felt that it was real and her heart pounded at the thought of a man waiting for her as if he's her lover. The only person that popped into her head at that very moment was Chord.<p>

She quickly made her way to the set of Glee once she had gathered herself together. It was their first day filming the 3rd season and she was excited to get back into the swing of things. Without the show's demanding schedule, she was left with her thoughts and, since her thoughts were mostly of Chord and relationships in general, she found it best to be busy with work instead.

As she parked her car at the parking lot, she felt her phone vibrate inside her purse. She chose to ignore the call since she knew that it must be Eric Stoltz, the director, or Ryan Murphy giving her a call. She's been known to be late a couple of times and, though she had been forgiven for each time she had been late, she didn't want to have that kind of track record.

She ran as quickly as she could towards the trailers for hair and make-up when she felt her phone vibrate again. Annoyed, she fished around her purse for her phone and answered it with a slight hint of frustration. "I'm here. No need to call anymore," she says. There was silence on the other line, which bothered and scared Dianna slightly. "H-hello?" she tried again. "Hey, girl!" Jenna greeted Dianna on the other line. "Ah, J.U.! You scared me!" Dianna said with a laugh, "Where are you?"

Dianna searched around the trailer to find no one there. "Are you finished with hair and make-up already?" she asked Jenna (who was still on the phone with her). "Uh, yeah! Yeah! Actually, get over to the courtyard. Ryan needs everyone here now," Jenna answered back.

The strange feeling that bothered Dianna early that morning returned. This time, she felt her heart beat faster. She knew something was up but she wasn't sure whether or not it was a prank thought out by Mark or Cory. Without any more hesitation, Dianna ran to the courtyard as she was told. Again, she was welcomed by emptiness. It was quite early in the morning and the sun was just about to rise. She could feel sweat forming on her forehead. Just then, from behind her, she heard a familiar beat and then a melody. As the melody continued, it became apparent to Dianna that it was someone playing a guitar. Then she heard a voice. A familiar voice.

_ Do you hear me?  
>I'm talking to you.<br>Across the water  
>Across the deep, blue ocean<br>Under the open sky  
>Oh my, baby, I'm tryin'<em>

Though Dianna knew who it was, she turned around to face him with a genuinely surprised and shocked look on her face. It was Chord and he was walking towards her – guitar in hand and a smile to match. He was looking right at her and, at that moment, she felt like she was the only woman left in the world.

_ Lucky I'm in love with my best friend  
>Lucky to have been where I have been<br>Lucky to be coming home again  
>Lucky we're in love in every way<br>Lucky to have stayed where we have stayed  
>Lucky to be coming home someday<em>

At last Chord was about two feet away from Dianna and he strummed his guitar gently to end the song. Embarrassed with what he had just done, he avoids looking at Dianna.

"What are you doing here?" Dianna asks Chord with a blunt tone.

"I… Uhh… I don't know," he says with a stammer.

"Seriously? You don't know? You just sang a song. Let alone a song that means a lot to me. You know, it might not mean a lot to you but —-"

"It does mean a lot to me."

"It does, huh?"

"Yes."

She continued to look at Chord with intensity - trying to read his thoughts but failing to do so. His gaze was still focused on the ground and she knew that he wasn't going to budge unless she provokes him. Fortunately, she knew him well enough that she could get him to talk. "You know what?" Dianna tells him with a heavy, aggravated sigh, "You're wasting my time, Chord. So either you tell me what you're doing here or I'm leaving." Inside, Dianna knew that her act was working. Though she was more assertive than she had planned, it seemed to have worked. Chord slowly lifted his head and looked at Dianna. Her heartbeat finally slowing down just by Chord's gaze.

"I don't know how many times or how many ways I've told you but… Di, I love you," Chord started, "I loved you even when I knew I wasn't supposed to. And believe I tried to work things out with Emma like you told me to. But I couldn't. All I could think about was you." Dianna urged Chord to continue with a shrug. "I loved you the moment you walked into my life," he said with a sigh, "And I know that sounds corny. And it sounds stupid. And you probably don't care much about what I have to say because you just broke up with your boyfriend. And, by the way, he's a stupid, stupid prick. Okay? I mean —- why? Why would he do that to you? Is he blind? Does he not have a brain? What kind of person cheats on someone like —-"

"Stop."

Chord quickly caught up with his breathing and stared at Dianna with anticipation and anxiety. "I'm sorry. I'm going overboard," he tells her apologetically. "No. No, you're not." she tells him, a smile slowly appearing on her face. Though he was confused at first, he knew then that she had been playing with him all along.

"Get over here," Dianna tells Chord. As he walked towards her, Dianna met up with him in the middle. Right then, Dianna held Chord's face gently and gave him a passionate kiss. One that felt extremely special to her somehow. One that she had not felt for a long time. He felt relief and the heavy weight on his soldiers disappeared. Out of joy, Chord spun her around while a single tear rolled down his cheek. As they slowly stopped spinning, Dianna wiped Chord's tear away. "No more secrets, no more hiding and no more running away," she orders him, "Got it?" He smiled, nodded and kissed her on the lips one more time. Thankfully, this time, the moment lasted and it was no longer one of his dreams. It was finally reality and it was theirs.


End file.
